Street art, graffiti and big big smackers

June 5, 2014 Pierrick Senelaer

Let’s face it, 10 years ago that post would have not existed because ten years ago, street art, graffiti or urban art, let’s call it that, wasn’t around. I actually need to point out that it was around but not as popular as it is now. Now popular often leads to some sort of fame and wait fort it… money revenue, bucks, big bucks.

I must admit, I wad gobbed smacked when I learnt how much some street artists are actually worth. Kids, I am about to give a very good and valid argument to go up to your parents and defend your case about becoming a vandal or should we call it an ‘urban creative mind’

Here are the 5 money hoovers in the street artosphere…

5. Retna: $5 million +

Real name: Marquis Lewis –aka Retna
Age and residence: 33 year old, L.A (USA)
First show: 2010 that coincided with the New York Fashion week
Last auction fetch: ‘Young Blood’ for USD7500 (Source : http://www.findartinfo.com)
Latest gold mine collaboration: Louis Vuitton scarves series + mural creation on the storefront of the designer’s new location in the Design District of Miami.

4. Mr. Brainwash (or MBA): $10 million

Real name: Thierry Guetta –aka Mr Brainwash
Age and residence: 47 year old, L.A (USA)
First show: 2012 ‘Life is beautiful’. Banksy suggested to Thierry that he should do some graffiti work of his own. Gusto became his trademark and on overnight success followed. Profits exceeded over 1 million at his first show
Last auction fetch: ‘Tomato spray’ for USD6250 (Source : http://www.findartinfo.com)

3. Shepard Fairey: $15 million

Real name: Frank Shepard Fairey – aka Shepard Fairey
Age and residence: 44 year old, Charleston (USA)
First show: or rather what put him on the map – He put together ‘HOPE’ for President Barack Obama‘s campaign for presidency back in 2008. The red and blue poster is now an iconic symbol of the election. (Fairey’s Obama poster now hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.)
Latest auction fetch: ‘CHANGE’ for USD2500 (Source : http://www.findartinfo.com)
Latest gold mine enterprise: His ‘Obey’ Andre the Giant images, which became viral online and translated into a clothing line, including t-shirts sold at Urban Outfitters.

2. Banksy: $20 million

Real name: ?? Most of us will know who this guy is even thought and quite remarkably, this artist continues to work under the radar as a faceless enigma. – aka Banksy
Age and residence: 39 year old we think, Bristol most probably
First show: or rather first known large wall mural was “The Mild Mild West” painted in 1997 to cover advertising of a former solicitors’ office on Stokes Croft Avenue, Bristol. It depicts a teddybear lobbing a Molotov cocktail at three riot police.
Latest auction fetch: ‘GOLF SALE’ for USD6144 (Source : http://www.findartinfo.com)
Latest gold mine enterprise: Banksy has published a number of books on his projects and directed two movies, one of which – “Exit Through the Gift Shop” – was nominated for an Academy Award in 2011.

Mild Mild Mild West by Banksy | Art-Pie — Mild Mild Mild West by Banksy

1. David Choe: $200 million

Real name: David Choe – aka David Choe – real, no bullshit stage name
Age and residence: 37 year old, L.A (USA)
Latest auction fetch: ‘JIMMI’ for USD200 (Source : http://www.findartinfo.com)
Latest gold mine enterprise: Since he was approached back in 2005 by a small social media start-up by the name of Facebook, his life had changed and the bucks started pilling up. The president at the time, Sean Parker, was a fan of the artist and commissioned him for a series of murals for their office headquarters. What Choe delivered was his blend of frenetic style of abstraction, urban landscapes and sexuality. While Parker indicated it took a bit of time to get used to the distraction of the walls, Choe was presented with two options of payment; cash, or stocks. He went for the latter and damn his high-risk venture has paid off…

David Choe | Art-Pie — David Choe painting the Facebook HQ walls

Related links –
> “Dirty Hands: The Art and Crime of David Choe”
> “Exit Throuhg the Gift shop” – a Banksy documentary

CONTEMPORARY ART

When do you take warning from your habits?

June 1, 2014 Jane Boyer

Parc_del_Laberint_d’Horta_-_Hermit’s_cabin_-_The_monk I’m a terrible creature of habit. I like my routines because they free up brain space for more important stuff – the stuff where I can be really creative and unpredictable. Mostly, I live in harmony with my habits, enjoying their usefulness and the comfort they bring, but there have been times when my habits have given me cause for alarm.

This is the topic of the latest RECURSIVE post: Where does it turn?

Discussion topic 3: WHEN DO YOU TAKE WARNING FROM A HABIT?

Pop over to RECURSIVE to find out about a fascinating study from MIT which finds that habits are formed in the prefrontal cortex of the brain and not in the subconscious. Then join in the discussion by leaving a comment.

BLOG, STREET ART

Fin Dac and his Urban Aesthetics

May 28, 2014 Pierrick Senelaer

Cork native artist Fin DAC has not been around the street art scene as long as some other artists such as Inkie for example but he has been nevertheless left his mark out there and his works are appreciated by an ever growing amount of people across the world.

UK, France and USA is where you are the most likely to encounter his ‘Urban Aesthetics’ as he likes to define his art and style which combines paint and stencil techniques. Fin DAC did not go to some Art Schools but rather grab spray, cardboards or brushes and had a go.

We thank him for doing this.

His influences range from dark graphic novels through to the works of Francis Bacon and Aubrey Beardsley.

Fin Dac | Art-Pie — Location : New York (x Christina Angelina)

Girls seems to be the main subject in Fin DAC’s works. Here is what the artist says about this:

“I use 2 different models or muses: Nicole Wu for the very pretty/flowery pieces and Meghna Lall for the more edgy/rockier stuff. They are both people I found through Flickr. The shift towards more asian influenced themes in my artwork coincided with a seismic shift in my output and interest from the outside world… but I don’t ever think about the significance of that ”

BLOG, CONTEMPORARY ART, DIGITAL ART

animated gifs better than 3D

May 28, 2014 Pierrick Senelaer

There seems to be a trend amongst many other on the web right now – animated GIFs. I must admit, I love some of them.

Some are hilarious and other rather cleverest than funny. How about this one below (You’ll all have recognised a famous street art work from Banksy)?

Now, to all things, they are better things? To creativity, there is always more creativity. To animated GIFs, there are Jamie Beck and Kevin Burg’s animated GIFs or rather photos. Next level? Yes, defintely.

Take Jamie Beck and motion graphics artist Kevin Burg and “cinemagraphs” as they are called, are here for us to enjoy, are here to mesmerised us. Subtle and soft are the feelings that come to mind when I look at these.

How did these come about? The pair was inspired to create these cinemagraphs while preparing to cover Fashion Week this past February: “We wanted to tell more of a story than a single still frame photograph but didn’t want the high maintenance aspect of a video,”

Enough said. Look at these examples below.

CONTEMPORARY ART

RECURSIVE on Repetition

May 27, 2014 Jane Boyer 1 Comment

I’m very pleased to say

1) I have a new project in the works and

2) Art Pie is again media sponsor!

This project is smaller in scale than This ‘Me’ of Mine, but just as interesting. RECURSIVE explores the inner repetitive thought processes, both ones we’re aware of and ones we’re not. The works in the exhibition show evidence of this recursive thinking in action through the work. My goal for the blogsite is to create a place to discuss what repetition is, how it affects us, and why we’re so drawn to it. So far, that is working really well!

Here’s an example:

janeboyer

Submitted on 2014/05/16 at 1:03 pm

I’ve been thinking of how I feel about the change in repetition, and really, how would I put it into words?I can remember feeling ‘solid’, meaning I knew who I was in relation to where I was and who I was with. Mechanization made communities prosperous, providing most of the work for a local population.

I knew what products I could depend on, where to buy them and how much they would cost. I knew I would need to save money to afford more expensive things I wanted. There was stability in knowing products were readily available and in constant supply. I came home with products I liked in shopping bags. I could smell the production process of tires and toothpaste on the air, knowing they smelled polluting.Now, as someone involved in a digital world, I work where I do not live, I purchase products from all over the world which are shipped to me.

I feel guilty at the thought that less wealthy people than I (and I am not wealthy!) make the clothes I wear and have produced them in a very foreign place in unknown circumstances and at unknown costs to the environment. I feel ‘transparent’ as I share quirky little thoughts on twitter and downright exposed when I post anything on Facebook. I feel impinged by knowing that I can never decide to remove my profile on Facebook. I feel hectic and rushed even though I sit at a table most of my day typing on a keyboard.

I see almost no one, except my husband, throughout my workday. In short, I feel boxed, constrained, observed and strangely non-material in a world that I struggle to comprehend, as my thoughts flit from task to task, page to page, and site to site.

Ian Pickering

Submitted on 2014/05/16 at 4:50 pm

I am not sure that repetition is mechanisation. Farming is repetitive as is much basic craftwork. I am also tempted to suggest that change has always produced a response that things have got worse. Feeling transparent. That is an insight and I understand the idea of being simultaneously connected but isolated.

codedimages

Submitted on 2014/05/16 at 5:17 pm

I recognise your descriptions. I do feel though that I work where I live, but the product of that work is then spread instantly to all parts of the globe and to anyone who cares to take an interest. Working alone is lonely.

I envy those who have a physically located group to associate with and are able to share ideas face-to-face. I don’t know if any of this has repetition at its core though. I do know I would not want to turn the clock back entirely. I feel privileged to be able to discuss ideas with people all over the world.

Being able to find like-minds wherever they might be is a huge plus for the web. On the other hand I need to find a better balance, where at least some portion of time is spent physically co-located with other artists. I will be working on that aspect in the days, weeks, months and years to come.

Kay

Submitted on 2014/05/17 at 1:46 pm

A few thoughts on a great topicI knit and crochet so there is much repetition involved in those actions. By chance I found and continue to find those repetitions creative. The stitching can also have a meditative quality to it, awakening me to the moment.

I don’t expect every repetitive action to have a meditative quality to it however I do recognise actions which are engaging and enlivening and those which have a dulling effect.I have had interesting on-line conversations and got connected to collaborative on-line projects -which I would never have come across without the digital world – I do value them. What I find with digital media is that it is all too easy to get stuck in repetitive actions which don’t lead to anything in particular.

The impact of some digital repetition is to dull / numb the brain. Perhaps that is why we crave the connection with humans who aren’t glued to the screen. The connections can perhaps be more random, intuitive and exploratory.I also think that repetitive digital actions in office spaces are questionable. The assumption seems to be that if people are at the screen they are working and even engaged in their work.

I don’t agree. Humans create and work in a range of ways. As a fellow human I need variety and stimulation through words, textiles and other random moments to develop. This becomes more important as I get older. I work with older people and am obsessed with memory, aging, loneliness and isolation! A few of the comments here refer to people experiencing a sense of isolation even in a world of virtual connections.

I think it is essential to create spaces which integrate the virtual and physical nature of life (I love the makers library network). Isolation is a killer. As a human I want to be awake to this and create repetitions which sustain me and who know others around me.

——

We hope you’ll join us and join in the conversation…

Go to RECURSIVE

STREET ART ENCOUNTERS